The Relationship Between Data Practices and Financial Performance

During the second quarter of 2014, Antilles Economics conducted its first Survey of Use of Data in Barbadian Organisations and the results are ready! The survey had three objectives:

Provide a baseline assessment of how both internal and external data is used within Barbadian organisations

Determine if there was a relationship between data practices and financial performance

Determine if there were differences in how data was used in different industries and types of organisations

In our first of four articles summarising the results we discuss the Relationship Between Data Practices and Financial Performance. We have been taught that our products and services should be designed to meet consumer demands, and that our analysis of our environment should consider all of the external factors impacting our business. But we often fall short of this ideal.

Our survey results suggest that these failings have a bottom-line impact and that improving our access to and usage of data can improve our performance.